Global Payments (NYSE:GPN) Lifted to “Buy” at StockNews.com

Global Payments (NYSE:GPN) was upgraded by investment analysts at StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Wednesday.

A number of other equities analysts have also recently commented on the stock. Stephens reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $130.00 price objective on shares of Global Payments in a research note on Wednesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on Global Payments from $111.00 to $118.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 20th. Wells Fargo & Company began coverage on Global Payments in a research report on Wednesday, June 12th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $100.00 target price on the stock. Susquehanna reissued a “positive” rating and set a $147.00 target price on shares of Global Payments in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Evercore ISI dropped their price target on Global Payments from $170.00 to $160.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, June 25th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating, eighteen have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Global Payments has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $140.96.

Global Payments Stock Performance

GPN stock traded down $0.81 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $111.26. The stock had a trading volume of 1,052,010 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,194,320. The company has a current ratio of 0.92, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68. The firm has a market cap of $28.40 billion, a PE ratio of 22.08, a PEG ratio of 0.70 and a beta of 0.98. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $104.93 and its two-hundred day moving average is $110.37. Global Payments has a 52 week low of $91.60 and a 52 week high of $141.77.

Global Payments (NYSE:GPN) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, August 7th. The business services provider reported $2.93 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.90 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $2.57 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.32 billion. Global Payments had a net margin of 14.26% and a return on equity of 11.93%. Global Payments’s quarterly revenue was up 4.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.48 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Global Payments will post 11.07 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Global Payments

In other news, CAO David M. Sheffield sold 1,651 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $100.73, for a total value of $166,305.23. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 20,531 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,068,087.63. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 0.98% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. New Covenant Trust Company N.A. purchased a new stake in shares of Global Payments during the first quarter worth $31,000. LRI Investments LLC bought a new stake in shares of Global Payments during the 1st quarter worth $32,000. POM Investment Strategies LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Global Payments in the second quarter valued at about $32,000. West Paces Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in Global Payments by 54.5% in the 1st quarter. West Paces Advisors Inc. now owns 309 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $41,000 after buying an additional 109 shares during the last quarter. Finally, North Star Investment Management Corp. increased its position in Global Payments by 154.7% during the first quarter. North Star Investment Management Corp. now owns 354 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $47,000 after acquiring an additional 215 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.76% of the company’s stock.

Global Payments Company Profile

Global Payments Inc provides payment technology and software solutions for card, check, and digital-based payments in the Americas, Europe, and the Asia-Pacific. It operates through two segments, Merchant Solutions and Issuer Solutions. The Merchant Solutions segment offers authorization, settlement and funding, customer support, chargeback resolution, terminal rental, sales and deployment, payment security, and consolidated billing and reporting services.